Falconhead Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2022 $15-$18 Hands down this is one of my favourite 2022 sauvignon blancs. It is so deliciously punchy and perfectly prickly in terms of its textures. Passionfruit, lemongrass, lime zest and bursting with basil, it has incredible citrus concentration and a lovely herbaceous layer running from sniff to sip to swallow. … Read More
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Chateau Garage Lyons Vineyard Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2022
Chateau Garage Lyons Vineyard Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2022 $50 Many winemakers call themselves ‘garagistes’ these days because they do things on a small scale. However I’ve been inside Ollie Powrie’s tiny, old-as-the-hills garden shed, where he makes his wines, and there is literally no room to swing, well anything really. Arms could almost stretch from … Read More
Riviera Coteaux Varois en Provence Rosé 2021
Riviera Coteaux Varois en Provence Rosé 2021 $19 – $22 This rosé is a bit of a mystery in terms of what’s grapes it’s made of, however, there’s no mistaking the intensely clean, crisp, crunchy-fresh mouthfeel and soft, pink peppercorn and watermelon complexity on the nose. Spice-edged and layered with very subtle redcurrant characters, it’s … Read More
Mora Central Otago Chardonnay 2022
Mora Central Otago Chardonnay 2022 $45 Central Otago chardonnay has its own signature and I’m a total convert. Crafted from a blend of Mendoza-clone and own-rooted Clone 6 fruit grown on 28yo vines in their Eden Vineyard in the Pisa sub-region. A full malolactic fermentation has injected a soft, creamy, cashew character which washes across … Read More
B & B Big and Buttery Barrel Fermented California Chardonnay 2021
B & B Big and Buttery Barrel Fermented California Chardonnay 2021 $20-$22 Totally living up to its name, this is a California classic that’ll definitely appeal to lovers of an old-school, oaky, butterscotchy style. Showing a smoky element from the French oak barrels used combined with a vein of vanilla from a proportion of American … Read More
Greystone Organic Waipara Valley Pétillant Naturel 2021
Greystone Organic Waipara Valley Pétillant Naturel 2021 $47.99 Paired with: Baked stuffed apples by Annabel Langbein in CANVAS in the NZ Herald June 24th 2023 Crafted in the ancient method of bottling wine unfined, unfiltered and before the primary ferment of a riesling base has had a chance to finish, it’s an apple-laced, feijoa and … Read More
Barossa Black Double Oak Series ‘Rum’ Barossa Shiraz 2019
Barossa Black Double Oak Series ‘Rum’ Barossa Shiraz 2019 $20-$22 If caramelised, vanilla-and-smoke-saturated shiraz is your thing then you’ve come to the right cul-de-sac. I’m guessing that classic hit of rum is from this wine being aged in old rum barrels, but combine that with sweet fruit intensity, boysenberry, blackberry and blackcurrant and a hint … Read More
Barossa Black Barossa Shiraz 2019
Barossa Black ‘Barossa’ Shiraz 2019 $17-$19 Just classic, plummy, blackcurranty, chocolatey shiraz right here. Sweet fruit concentration, buckets of berries, smooth, soothing, saucy and dangerously easy to drink, it’s got hearty, ribsticking Winter recipes written all over it. Then again, it’s also got classic smoky, charred, barbequed sausages and lamb chops written all over it … Read More
Trinity Hill Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2021
Trinity Hill Hawke’s Bay Syrah 2021 $24 A strong silver medal winner in the recent 2023 dish Magazine Syrah Tasting Panel, this wine is a rockstar because it roars with fresh, juicy spice-saturated layers on the nose and palate and boasts fine, earthy tannins and stylish, savoury firmness. I really like the pure blackcurrant and … Read More
Mt Difficulty Ghost Town Central Otago Pinot Noir 2017
Mt Difficulty Ghost Town Central Otago Pinot Noir 2017 $55-$60 Ghost Town is one of Mt D’s Single Vineyard series, showcasing fruit sourced from a vineyard the Dicey family planted back in 2002. It’s located on Chinaman’s Terrace in Central Otago’s Bendigo sub-region, and after six years of quiet, sleepy time in the bottle it’s … Read More